Manchester woman pleads to sexual exploitation of child

CONCORD - A Manchester woman faces a minimum of 15 years in prison after pleading guilty in U.S. District Court to one charge of sexual exploitation of a child.

.Erin Upham, 21, will be sentenced April 29 at 10:30 a.m...The investigation that led to Upham's arrest and plea began last year when the U.S. Air Force notified Manchester Police that Upham was communicating with a service member stationed at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan. The Air Force said the communication was of a sexual nature and involved a child...A federal search warrant was obtained and a forensic examination of seized electronic items, including a laptop and cellphones, revealed digital images of Upham and a minor child engaged in sexually explicit conduct...The charge was prosecuted under Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice nationwide initiative to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. In addition to the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Manchester and Derry Police Departments participated in the investigation...